"July 19th? That's not good news! What are the theaters thinking?!" Victor was mad. His face was turning red.
Zane's eyes narrowed. This was bad. The summer movie season was like a big, crazy battlefield. The giant studios put out their biggest movies, and little movies like theirs could get crushed.
His movie, Hard Candy, cost less than a million dollars to make. Throwing it out next to the big, giant movies was like sending a kitten to fight a lion.
"Boss, the theater chains are messing with us!" Victor said, throwing a list of movies down on the desk. "Independence Day, Clock Tower... all of them are giant studio movies! Everyone says they'll be the biggest hits of the year!"
Zane looked at the list. It was a really scary list of blockbusters.
"Darn it," Zane muttered. "They're setting us up to fail."
He knew his movie was good. It was a smart, scary movie. If it came out at a quiet time, it could make $6 or $10 million. But squeezed between these giants? They'd be lucky to make $3 million.
"Boss, maybe we should wait," Victor suggested. "We could push Hard Candy to next spring. It's much less crowded then."
Zane shook his head. He was a man who trusted his gut, and he believed in this movie.
"No," Zane said, his voice firm. "I don't care how big those other movies are. Our movie is good. It's special. I hired a genius director, Zack Snyder, to make it, and he did an amazing job. I'm not going to hide it in a corner like I'm scared."
He was also thinking about Zack. He wanted to show his director that he had 100% faith in him. To show that kind of trust, they had to be brave together.
"We release on July 19th," he said again, his decision final.
On July 4th, a very sad Zack Snyder sat in Zane's office. He looked really down.
"Zack, I am so sorry," Zane began, and he truly meant it. He felt terrible that his friend and partner was so upset. "Wald Pictures is still a small company. We tried to get you a better date, but we just... we couldn't get it done. This was your first big movie, and I feel like we let you down. I'm really sorry."
Zane looked so genuinely sad and guilty that it just made Zack feel even worse.
Look at him, Zack thought, his heart sinking. He's the boss. He's the one losing all the money, and he's saying sorry to me. Maybe... maybe I'm just not good enough. Maybe I should just go back to directing music videos.
"Mr. Blackwood, please," Zack said, standing up. "This isn't your fault. It's my fault. If I was a better director, the theaters would have wanted to give us a good spot. I'm the one who should be sorry." He took a shaky breath. "Maybe I'm just not meant to be a movie director. I think I should just—"
"Bullshit!"
Zane's shout was so loud it made Zack jump. Zane stood up and pointed a finger right at him, but his eyes were full of passion, not anger.
"Zack Snyder! Don't you ever say that!" Zane's voice was full of fire. "You are a genius. A rare, amazing talent!"
"So we lose on one movie?" Zane continued, his voice dropping to an excited, friendly whisper. "So what? Who cares? I believe in you. As long as you want to direct, and as long as I have money, we are going to keep making movies. If one fails, we'll make two. If two fail, we'll make ten!"
Zane's eyes were shining with belief. "I would sell this whole company before I gave up on a talent like yours! I know we're going to succeed. I believe in this team, and I believe in you."
Zack just stood there, completely stunned. This wasn't just a boss talking. This was... belief. This was the kind of support every artist dreams of getting, just once in their life.
At that moment, Zack Snyder felt a fierce, unbreakable loyalty in his heart. He would have walked through fire for Zane Blackwood.
Wow, Zane thought to himself, letting out his breath. I really meant all of that. We're going to show them. We're really going to show them all.
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